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The Big Five Podcast

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The Big Five is the quintessential Montreal podcast, and the best way to get caught up on the top stories impacting the city. Every weekday, host Elias Makos and a roster of Montreal thought leaders debate and inform.

Location:

United States

Description:

The Big Five is the quintessential Montreal podcast, and the best way to get caught up on the top stories impacting the city. Every weekday, host Elias Makos and a roster of Montreal thought leaders debate and inform.

Language:

English


Episodes
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Quebec Liberal Leader Charles Milliard joins The Big 5 to elaborate on his Bill 96 comments. Plus: Reaction from the panel

4/17/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Quebec Liberal Party Leader Charles Milliard, Akil Alleyne, Reporter and commentator with extensive experience analysing legal, political, and social issues and Manager of the GemStar Circle of Excellence Scholarship Program, and Lea Streliski, Best-selling author, comedian and columnist.

Duration:00:34:14

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Is the PQ already toast? Plus: Courageous Old Port residents fight against housing.

4/16/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Dan Delmar, Co-founder of the content marketing firm TNKR Media and co-host of the podcast Inspiring Entrepreneurs Canada, and Caroline Codsi, Founder & Chief Equity Officer, Women in Governance.

Duration:00:32:58

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Quebec politics is in a state of total flux. Plus: Canada’s retirees are cutting back on their European vacations.

4/15/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Andrew Caddell, columnist for the Hill Times and President of the Task Force on Linguistic policy, and Sue Smith is a Montreal journalist and broadcaster.

Duration:00:24:22

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Mark Carney gets his majority. Plus: Is it time to bring back toll roads to Quebec?

4/14/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Lionel Perez, Former city councilor and former leader of the Official Opposition at Montreal City Hall, and Justine McIntyre, Co-Founder of Civica Strategies and former city councillor.

Duration:00:32:56

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Get ready for a six-month election campaign as Christine Fréchette wins the CAQ leadership. Plus: A Quebec judge warns of a “two-tier” justice system.

4/13/2026
Elias Makos welcomes in Denis Coderre, former mayor of Montreal, and Jimmy Zoubris, Montreal businessman, longtime activist and former special advisor to Valerie Plante.

Duration:00:31:57

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Mark Carney and his Liberals celebrate, the CAQ deliberates, and the push for government-run grocery stores.

4/10/2026
Elias Makos ends the week with Neil Drabkin, is a lawyer who served as federal prosecutor and a political commentator who was a chief of staff in the Harper government, and Anthony Koch, Former National Spokesperson for Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre and current managing principal at AK Strategies.

Duration:00:31:30

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Another floor-crossing, but this one’s different. Plus: Is it time to ban spanking in Canada?

4/9/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Justine McIntyre, Co-Founder of Civica Strategies and former city councillor, and Paul Gott, Lead singer and guitarist for Montreal Punk Rock band the Ripcordz and a journalism professor at Concordia.

Duration:00:34:13

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A ceasefire in the Middle East? Plus: Legault’s goodbye tour, A.I. gets closer to its “Skynet” moment

4/8/2026
Elias Makos welcomes in Kyle Matthews co-founder and Executive Director of the Montreal Institute for Global Security, Daniel Tran, Director of Communication and governmental relations at Casacom, and Akil Alleyne, Reporter and commentator with extensive experience analyzing legal, political, and social issues and Manager of the GemStar Circle of Excellence Scholarship Program.

Duration:00:32:10

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Mankind visits the moon and the CAQ heads to the polls. Plus: Montreal dodges the FIFA bullet.

4/7/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Andrew Caddell, columnist for the Hill Times and President of the Task Force on Linguistic policy, and Raphaël Melançon, political analyst for CTV Montreal and CJAD 800, columnist for the Montreal Gazette, and president and founder of Trafalgar Strategies.

Duration:00:33:55

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Est-ce que ça sent la coupe? Plus: Sports gambling plunging more Quebecers into debt, the Liberals fight back against high-speed rail criticism

4/6/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Meeker Guerrier, commentator at Noovo and RDS and Jimmy Zoubris, Montreal businessman, longtime activist and former special advisor to Valerie Plante on The Big 5.

Duration:00:24:01

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As gas prices reach record levels, are Quebecers fed up? Plus: Buying fake maple syrup with fake $100 bills in our low-trust society

4/2/2026
Joining Elias on The Big 5 today were Sue Smith, Montreal journalist and broadcaster & Daniel Tran, Director of Communication and governmental relations at Casacom. Among the topics discussed on The Big 5 were The Quebec government has unveiled a new tool to track fuel prices across the province.Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is calling for federal gas taxes to be scrapped for the rest of the yearAdd Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet to the list of people against the high speed rail projectAdd Maple syrup to the list of things you can’t trust.

Duration:00:25:07

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Mark Carney’s China problem. Plus: Is Canada’s High-Speed rail project a boondoggle in the making?

4/1/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Jonathan Kalles, Vice President at McMillan Vantage, a national public affairs firm, and former advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Raphaël Melançon, political analyst for CTV Montreal and CJAD 800, columnist for the Montreal Gazette, and president and founder of Trafalgar Strategies.

Duration:00:24:41

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Should you have the right to insult cops? Plus: The price of Habs tickets is sky high

3/31/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Victor Henriquez, Public affairs and crisis management specialist at Public Strategy and Conseil, and Dan Delmar, Co-founder of the content marketing firm TNKR Media and co-host of the podcast Inspiring Entrepreneurs Canada.

Duration:00:23:16

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Rousseau “retires,” stolen KitKats, and city-run grocery stores. Plus: The NDP gets a new leader

3/30/2026
Elias Makos kicks off the week with Paul Gott, Lead singer and guitarist for Montreal Punk Rock band the Ripcordz and a journalism professor at Concordia, and Jimmy Zoubris, Montreal businessman, longtime activist and former special advisor to Valerie Plante.

Duration:00:25:18

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Veuve Clicquot comes to Costco in Quebec. Plus: Can you put lobster in a poutine?

3/27/2026
Elias Makos ends the week that was with Meeker Guerrier, Commentator at Noovo and RDS, and Lea Streliski, Best-selling author, comedian and columnist.

Duration:00:24:40

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Air Canada’s CEO apologizes for his English-only condolences. Plus: Montreal’s Police Chief shares frustration over repeat offenders

3/26/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Trudie Mason, veteran newscaster at CJAD 800, and Caroline Codsi, Founder & Chief Equity Officer, Women in Governance.

Duration:00:25:03

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Air Canada’s CEO finds himself in another language controversy. Plus: Discount groceries come with hefty parking tickets

3/25/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Akil Alleyne, Reporter and commentator with extensive experience analysing legal, political, and social issues and Manager of the GemStar Circle of Excellence Scholarship Program, and Raphaël Melançon, political analyst for CTV Montreal and CJAD 800, columnist for the Montreal Gazette, and president and founder of Trafalgar Strategies.

Duration:00:24:39

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Quebec moves to prevent mental health tragedies. Plus: Airbnb hopes to astroturf their way to more rentals in Montreal

3/24/2026
Elias Makos is joined by Dan Delmar, Co-founder of the content marketing firm TNKR Media and co-host of the podcast Inspiring Entrepreneurs Canada, and Political analyst Karim Boulos.

Duration:00:24:12

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The challenge to Bill 21 heads to the Supreme Court. Plus: Your pet’s right to an apartment, and your right to resell concert tickets.

3/23/2026
Elias Makos starts the week off with Anthony Koch, Former National Spokesperson for Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre and current managing principal at AK Strategies, and Jimmy Zoubris, Montreal businessman, longtime activist and former special advisor to Valerie Plante.

Duration:00:31:31

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Canada takes a dive in the World Happiness Report Plus: Pierre Poilievre’s Joe Rogan experience.

3/20/2026
Elias Makos caps the week off with Justine McIntyre, Co-Founder of Civica Strategies and former city councillor, and Raphaël Melançon, political analyst for CTV Montreal and CJAD 800, columnist for the Montreal Gazette, and president and founder of Trafalgar Strategies.

Duration:00:32:49